Collection Summary: An interview of Vaino Kola conducted 1994 Sept. 12, by Robert F. Brown, for the Archives of American Art, in Kola's home, Norton, Mass.

Kola discusses his childhood in Finland during the war with the Soviet Union, in which his father was an important commander, and during World War II; and the necessity to leave following the war because of the pressure from the Soviet Union. He recalls growing up in Worcester, Mass; learning English; his attendance at the High School of Commerce; excelling in swimming; attending the Massachusettes College of Art (BFA, 1959) and the influence upon him of teachers Beverly Hallam, David Berger, Calvin Burnett, and Lawrence Kupferman; and his years at the Yale School of Art and Architecture (MFA, 1962) and recollections of Josef Albers and his teaching methods.

This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.

Funding for the digital preservation of this interview was provided by a grant from the Save America's Treasures Program of the National Park Service.

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